Ohio State men’s hockey closes out its regular season schedule this week with a trip to Wisconsin. The Badgers and Buckeyes last crossed paths in late January when Cameron Hughes scored an overtime game winner at Madison Square Garden to hand the Bucks their first, and to-date only, sweep of the 2016-17 season.
| team stats | ohio state | wisconsin |
|---|---|---|
| Overall Record | 18-10-6 | 19-12-1 |
| Avg. Goals For / Against | 4.00 / 3.03 | 3.66 / 3.34 |
| Power Play / Penalty Kill | 31.9% / 72.9% | 22.2% / 85.4% |
| Best Goal Scorer | Nick Schilkey (26) | Luke Kunin (20) |
| Points Leader | Mason Jobst (47) | Luke Kunin (35) |
| Top Goaltender | Matt Tomkins (2.69/.900) | Jack Berry (2.67/.902) |
Since that meeting OSU’s stock has fallen while Wisconsin has risen to contend with Minnesota for the Big Ten’s regular season title. (Although the Gophers need just four points at home against Michigan State this week to clinch the outright crown so it’s probably theirs.)
The Buckeyes enter this series fresh off a split with the Spartans. The Badgers’ last outing was also a split. Six different players scored as Wisconsin defeated Penn State 7-4 last Friday. On Saturday the Nittany Lions torched the Badgers, 6-0, in Peyton Jones’ second shutout of the season.
| b1G standings | w | l | t | sow | pts | pwr | final series |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Minnesota | 13 | 5 | 0 | 0 | 39 | No. 5 | vs Michigan State |
| Wisconsin | 12 | 6 | 0 | 0 | 36 | No. 13 | vs Ohio State |
| Penn State | 10 | 7 | 1 | 0 | 31 | No. 9 | at Michigan |
| Ohio State | 9 | 8 | 1 | 1 | 29 | No. 17 | at Wisconsin |
| Michigan | 4 | 12 | 2 | 2 | 16 | No. 39 | vs Penn State |
| Michigan State | 3 | 13 | 2 | 0 | 11 | No. 48 | at Minnesota |
Wisconsin has a lot to play for this week, being in shouting distance of both the Big Ten title and an at large bid to the NCAA tournament. However, I think OSU is going to throw a wrench into the Badgers’ glorious plans.
The Bucks want revenge for that sweep and they are a much healthier squad this time around. Top goal scorer Nick Schilkey did not play in the last match-up between the teams and it was the first competitive action after a long layoff for several other players. Ohio State is also very, very good on the road (11-2-3).
I’m not confident that the Bucks will return the brooms. However, I would be surprised if they didn’t return with at least one win. (I also doubt that Penn State is going to drop both its games against Michigan this week so Ohio State will probably wind up fourth in the Big Ten and face the fifth place Wolverines in the first round of the B1G tournament.)
OSU and Wisconsin are scheduled for 8pm ET starts both tonight and Saturday. A radio broadcast is available on 1460 AM. Live online streams can be viewed via BTN2Go. Saturday’s season finale will be televised live on BTN.
Let's finish this preview off with some end of the season FAQs.
What do the Buckeyes have to do to make the NCAA tournament?
Win the Big Ten tournament. The conference tourney champ gets an automatic bid to the NCAA tournament. I really don’t see them getting in any other way.
But wait. The Buckeyes are ranked No. 15. What about an at large bid?
They are, but the national polls don’t really mean anything. The rankings that count are the PairWise (PWR) which mimics the selection committee’s process and is rarely (if ever) wrong. Ohio State is No. 17 in the PairWise.
The NCAA tourney field is made up of 16 teams so No. 17 is only one place away from being in, right?
Not really. Two spots will be taken by the autobids for the AHA and WCHA conference tournament champs (who are not currently ranked in the top 16 of the PairWise). Upsets in the remaining four conference tournaments could further cut into the number of available at large berths. A team needs to be in the top 12 of the PairWise to have a realistic chance of making the national bracket.
I thought this was Ohio State's year. What happened?
Lost opportunities against the state of Michigan. It pains me to type it as much as it hurts you to read it but it’s true. Ohio State went a combined 5-3-0-0 against the Wolverines and Spartans this season. That sounds pretty good until you realize that the three teams above the Bucks in the Big Ten standings have two collective losses to the Michigan teams. Winning just two of those three contests (which were all one-goal losses) would have put OSU at 11-6-1-1 in the B1G, in third place going into this weekend, and only one point behind Wisconsin for second spot.
What do the Buckeyes need to do to turn things around and make a deep run in the B1G tournament?
“The little things” is a popular catch-all phrase in college hockey encompassing fundamental aspects of the game which are not necessarily measured statistically (crisp passing, smart puck possession, determined battling along the boards, etc.) plus a few that are chartable (shot blocking, face off wins, and so on). I suspect it is in these “little” areas that the Buckeyes’ fortunes will be made or lost over the next six to eight days.
